Australian man sues mother over inheritance snub

Court in Australia criticises the “unhealthy sense of entitlement'' of a man
who spent his life waiting to inherit his grandfather's £3 million estate

The court said that the grandson expected the estate to be handed to him on a platePhoto: Alamy

By Jonathan Pearlman

11:22AM GMT 26 Feb 2014

A judge in Australia has criticised the “unhealthy sense of entitlement'' of a man who spent his life waiting to inherit a portion of his grandparent's £3 million estate and lacked ambition despite a privileged upbringing which included attending one of the country’s most elite schools.

Robert Wilcox, 46, sued his mother Patricia in the Supreme Court of the state of New South Wales after she was made the sole beneficiary of a large rural estate owned by her father - an estate, the court said, that the grandson expected “to be handed to him on a plate”. Mr Wilcox’s younger brother, Benjamin, also sued but later settled.

Both children attended the 183-year-old King’s School in Sydney, one of the country’s oldest and most expensive schools, which today costs about $50,000 (£27,000) a year for tuition and board.

In a scathing judgment, Justice Michael Pembroke criticised both sons for launching a “sorry case” which resulted in “unquantifiable family discord, substantial cost and considerable hardship”. But the harshest words were reserved for the elder – and “unimpressive” - Mr Wilcox.

''Like many an expectant heir before him, he has not made the most of his opportunities, imprudently assuming that he and his brother would inherit their grandfather's estate,'' the judge said.

Related Articles

“No one is responsible for the position in which Robert Wilcox now finds himself, except himself.”

The judge said the$AUS5.5 million (£3 million) estate had been left to the mother in the expectation that it would eventually be left to the two sons. But Mr Wilcox - described as well-groomed and presentable – was not prepared to wait.

“Unfortunately, instead of waiting for events to run their natural course, the sons sued their mother,” the judge said.

Justice Pembroke said Mr Wilcox “has not made a financial success of his life, despite being given a better start than most young men could have expected”.

“He had a wholly unrealistic belief in his ability to own and operate an agricultural property,” the judge said.

“And he could not shake his deeply ingrained sense that he was destined to take over some or all of his grandfather's grazing enterprise… His unhealthy sense of entitlement may have constrained his ambition.”

The judge described Mr Wilcox’s financial circumstances as modest but “not utterly desperate”, saying he lives in share accommodation in Darling Point, one of Sydney’s most exclusive suburbs, and is in a stable relationship with a “country girl”. He has run various mechanical and tree-lopping businesses but told the court that the businesses “became 'too hard'”.

“There was no adequate evidence of his having tried to secure gainful employment,” the judge said. “I doubt that he was sufficiently motivated to find work. His delusional insistence on his entitlement to own and operate his grandfather's pastoral properties has I suspect, operated as a self-imposed impediment to his advancement in life.”

The court ruled Mr Wilcox was entitled to some money under the state’s succession laws. He will receive $AUS107,000 (£58,000) to pay off a tax debt and seven annual payments of $40,000 (£22,000) starting in 2016.